Sunday in Christian culture has traditionally been known as the “day of rest”.
Really? How many of you see Sunday as a “day of rest”? I certainly don’t!
If you’re anything like me, working long hours Monday to Friday and trying to have a social life or at least do something out on a Saturday, Sunday is actually designated “chores day”. It’s the day the house gets tidied and cleaned, the hutch gets properly cleaned out, the food shopping gets ordered, the washing gets done, etc. I hate having to do all those things but know they have to be done (although a cleaner would be a wonderful addition to my life!!).
Sunday is also the day I look ahead to the week, get ready for anything big that might be happening. This week is a six day working week (who looks forward to those?!). We’re playing badminton on Tuesday, have band practice on Thursday and then next Sunday is the Skydive (will post about that later!). It’s the day I panic about all the things that need to be done that I haven’t had time for or know need doing this week.
Then there are the Sunday night blues. Do you get those? They come to me at about 8pm on a Sunday evening, when I realise it’s a “school night” and I have to be sensible and go to bed at a reasonable time because the alarm will sound all too early on Monday morning.
This week I have been challenged to look at Sundays differently.
Joseph Addison said: “Sunday clears away the rust of the whole week”. So rather than spending my Sundays worrying about all the jobs that need doing, all the things that I’m not prepared for, I’m supposed to be using it to reflect on the last week, looking at what was good and bad, learning lessons from what I’ve been doing.
I guess that what the Christian culture means by a “day of rest” – a day to look back and forward, to consider the bigger picture.
There is an old proverb that says “A Sunday well-spent brings a week of content”. So that is what I want to remember today and on all Sundays from now on. Sundays will always be known as “chores day” in my house (all those things still need doing, after all), but if I treat the Sunday jobs list with a spirit of happiness and a way to think about the fab things in my life, then the whole week will be a better one.
I need to remember that there is time to relax on a Sunday. All those things that need doing do take time but it is possible to get them all done before going to Church in the evening and still have some me time. I just need to remember not to resent the chores… they are not a necessity to hate, they are something that makes my life better.
Easier said than done I’m sure, but it’s worth a try right?